Culture & History

New York's first New Year's Eve ball drop was in 1907. The ball was made of wood and iron and weighed 700 pounds (318 kilograms).

It is a tradition in Luxembourg to eat little human-shaped brioche men called "boxemännchen" during the Christmas season.

Christingles were first used in 1747 in Germany. They were initially just a candle and ribbon with the iconic orange added later.

Did you know that Mrs. Claus was born on December 25th, 880AD? That makes her over one thousand years old!

The first-ever ugly Christmas sweater party took place in Vancouver in 2002 and was hosted by Chris Boyd and Jordan Birch.

Did you know that in Home Alone, 9-year-old Macaulay Culkin's stunts were performed by a 30-year-old man?

The first Cyber Monday occurred on November 28, 2005, but only in the US. Canada followed a few years later, starting in 2008.

On Black Friday in 2011, a woman used pepper spray on other shoppers at an LA Walmart to get herself a half-priced Xbox.

In 2009, K-Mart became the first store to start the trend of Gray Thursday by opening their stores on Thanksgiving Day.

Did you know that due to its increasing usage, the word “turducken” was officially added to the dictionary in 2014?

The first TV commercial aired during a baseball game on July 1, 1941. It lasted just 10 seconds and cost the company under $10.

One of Walmart's largest purchases was by Shaquille O'Neal, totaling $70,000. It was initially declined as a suspicious purchase.

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